{"product_id":"when-rap-spoke-straight-to-god-paperback","title":"When Rap Spoke Straight to God - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eErica Dawson\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA book-length poem navigating belief, black lives, the tragedies of Trump, and the boundaries of being a woman. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eWhen Rap Spoke Straight to God\u003c\/i\u003e is utterly transporting. In language both elevated and slangy, saucy and tender, Dawson lovingly weaves the reader around her finger.\" --Jennifer Egan \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eWhen Rap Spoke Straight to God \u003c\/i\u003eisn't sacred or profane, but a chorus joined in a single soliloquy, demanding to be heard. There's Wu-Tang and Mary Magdelene with a foot fetish, Lil' Kim and a self-loving Lilith. Slurs, catcalls, verses, erasures--Dawson asks readers, \"Just how far is it to nigger?\" Both grounded and transcendent, the book is reality and possibility. Dawson's work has always been raw; but, When Rap Spoke Straight to God is as blunt as the answer to that earlier question: \"Here.\" Sometimes abrasive and often abraded, Dawson doesn't flinch. \u003cbr\u003eA mix of traditional forms where sonnets mash up with sestinas morphing to heroic couplets, \u003ci\u003eWhen Rap Spoke Straight to God\u003c\/i\u003e insists that while you may recognize parts of the poem's world, you can't anticipate how it will evolve. \u003cbr\u003eWith a literal exodus of light in the book's final moments, \u003ci\u003eWhen Rap Spoke Straight to God\u003c\/i\u003e is a lament for and a celebration of blackness. It's never depression; it's defiance--a persistent resistance. In this book, like Wu-Tang says, the marginalized \"ain't nothing to f--- with.\"\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eErica Dawson\u003c\/b\u003e is the author of two collections of poetry: \u003ci\u003eThe Small Blades Hurt\u003c\/i\u003e (Measure Press, 2014), winner of the 2016 Poets' Prize; and, \u003ci\u003eBig-Eyed Afraid\u003c\/i\u003e (Waywiser Pess, 2007), winner of the 2006 Anthony Hecht Prize. Her work has appeared in three editions of \u003ci\u003eBest American Poetry\u003c\/i\u003e; the Pushcart Prize XLI: \u003ci\u003eBest of the Small Presses\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eResistance\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eRebellion\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eLife: 50 Poems Now, Barrow Street\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBennington Review\u003c\/i\u003e, Crazyhorse, \u003ci\u003eHarvard Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eVirginia Quarterly Review\u003c\/i\u003e, and numerous other journals and anthologies. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eShe lives in Tampa, FL and is an Associate Professor at University of Tampa, where she also directs the low-residency MFA program.\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 64\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.5 x 8.3 x 5.3 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e September 18, 2018\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54090446373171,"sku":"9781947793033","price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0300\/5595\/6612\/files\/vW89kABb6-9781947793033.webp?v=1789606162","url":"https:\/\/www.vysn.com\/en-ca\/products\/when-rap-spoke-straight-to-god-paperback","provider":"VYSN","version":"1.0","type":"link"}